Cardinals Isringhausen Unlikely to Pitch

Published 7:00 pm, Tuesday, March 18, 2003

St. Louis Cardinals closer Jason Isringhausen felt stiffness in his right shoulder on Wednesday, perhaps postponing his first game this spring training.

Isringhausen, coming off surgery, had been scheduled to pitch Thursday against Baltimore if he had felt all right following his second batting practice, on Monday.

"I'll be surprised if he pitches tomorrow," Cardinals manager Tony La Russa said after the Cardinals' 14-12 loss to the New York Mets. "He came in today and didn't feel that great, so I don't know if we'll push it tomorrow."

Isringhausen had 32 saves in 38 chances last season. Before Wednesday, the Cardinals had been optimistic that he would be ready for the season opener.

"It's enough to say, `Wait a minute,'" La Russa said. "The key thing physically is did he have a setback, or is it just a hiccup? I don't know."

Isringhausen threw harder in his first bullpen session on Friday. In his 25-pitch outing on Monday, he concentrated on location.

Steve Kline, who had six saves last year and has 29 the past three seasons, is the most likely candidate to fill in.